Improvement in many-barreled-gun batteries



J. BRETT.

Machine Gun.

Patented May 3, 1864.

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UNITED STATES PATENT EEICE.

JAMES BRETT, or MATrEAwAmNEw YORK.

IMPROVEMENTv IN MANY-BARRELEDFG'UN BATTERIES.

Specification forming part .of Letters Patent No. 42,552, dated May 3, 1861.

Fo all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES BRETT, of Matteawan, in the county o f Dutchess and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Many-Barreled-Gun Bat- This invention consists in certain improved means of securingr in place and of providing for the removal of the chambered breech-piece employed for the reception of the vcartridges in a many-barreled-gun battery; also, in certain improvements in the mechanism for tiring the charges in such a battery. Y

ToV enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

A is the framing of the battery, having secured across the frontV part of it a stout block orl bar, B, which may be termed the barrelblock,7 into which the barrelsare to be screwed `or otherwise firmly secured. This block is represented as straight; but it may be slightly curved in a horizontal direction to give a slight In the back ,part ofthe said block there is a straight longitudinal cavity for the reception of what may bev termed the ehambe1'block0,which has chambers b b bored in vit for the reception of the charges, which should preferably be in cartridges, the said chambers being arranged and spaced to come exactly opposite theV barrels.

This chamber-block is beveled at its ends, as shown at a a in Fig. 1in dotted lines, and may also be beveled at its top or bottom to enable it to be easily withdrawn from the said cavity. It may be constructed to load in front, and be provided in recesses in its rear with nipples for percussioncaps,or may be constructed to load in front or at the rear with fixed ammunition; but its rear face must be flat and be flush with the back of the barrel-block B when it is in place in the cavity of the said block. There and extending the whole length ot the barrelblock B and chamber-block C. This breechpiece has its ends-litted to slide in Vertical guides m in the sides of the framing, the said guides keepingthe face of the said breechpiece in close contact with the back of the barrel-block and the back of the chamber-block, whichis in the cavity thereof. The said breechpiece hasprovided in` it a number of holes corresponding with the number of chambers and barrels, and arranged at corresponding distances apart for the reception of a corresponding number of pins, E E, which are all struck by one hammer, F, for the purpose of tiring the charges in all the chambers simultaneously. These pins are made long enough to project some distance beyond the back of the breech-piece D, and the parts so projecting have necks c c formed in them to enter slots in a spring, G, which extends nearly the whole length of the breech-piece. This spring is represented as composed of a piece of steel-plate bent in an angular form, as shown in Fig, 1, and secured to the bottom of the breech-piece, and it is strengthened to keep itfrom twisting by means ofa stiff strip ot' metal, d, which is" riveted lengthwise to it. This spring serves the purpose of confining the pins E E in the holes of the breech-piece I); but it permits a longitudinal movement ot' the said pins when the latter are struck by the hammer F, and also serves to draw back the said pins after the hammer has been drawn back again, so that the points or front ends of the said pins may be within the breech-piece and not interfere with the vertical sliding movement of the said piece. just draw back the pins far enough by one or more set-screws, c c, passing through the strengthening-piece d, and screwing into the breech-piece. l

The hammer F consists of a strong straight bar of iron or steel arranged opposite to the chamber-block, behind the breech-piece, and tted to slide horizontally back and forth in guides q f q, provided in the sides of the framing A, and itis actuated to strike the blow by means The spring Gr is adj usted so-that it will of two spiral springs, I I, coiled round two guiderods. f f, which are rigidly attached to the said bar'F, and which slide through the transom A of theframin g, against which the said sprin gs I I have their bearings.

J is a shaft arranged horizontally and parallel with the movable breech-piece D, in suitable bearings provided in the sides of the fram ing A, below the said breech piece. This shaft carries two eecentrics,KK, for operat` ing the breech-piece. Aportion of the breechpiece is in contact with the external peripheries of the said eecentrics, and pins g in the ends of the breech-piece work in grooves h in the inner faces of the said eccentries, asshown in Fig. l. The shaft is turned to operate the breech-piece by means of a hand crank or lever applied to one end, which protrudes through the framing,a half-revolution of the crank and eccentrics brin ging down ther breech-piece from the position shown in Fig. 1 in rear of the barrel-block, in which it confines the chamberblock in place and sustains it against the recoil produced in firing, to a position below the cavity in the barrel-block to allow the chamber-block to be taken out and another one to be pnt in, and another half-revolution in the same or in the reverse direction returns the breech-piece to the position rst mentioned. The pins E E and spring Gr will be understood 'to move with the breech-piece.

L is a horizontal shaft arranged some distance in rear of and parallel with J, in suitable bearings in the sides of the framing, 'and carrying two arms, M M, which serve both to draw back the hammer F for the purpose of cooking it and of liberating it to lire. The hammer is held back in the cocked position by means of two hooked levers, N N, which work on fulerum-pins z', secured in the sides of the framing. The hooks n of the said levers are at their front ends, and the rear ends of the said levers enter the forked front ends of two levers, P P, which work on fulcrum-pins a', secured in theframing, and the rear or lower ends of which are made heavy enough to insure their always bringing down the hooks n over the front edge of the hammer, as shown in Fig. l in black outline, when the latter is drawn back to thecocked position. Thedrawing back of the hammer is effected by turning the shaft L by alever,L, applied to one end for the purpose,in the direction of the black arrow shown near it in Fig. l, and thus bringing the arms M M into operation against the pins k 7c, which are secured in two pieces, Il, which are attached to the ends of the hammer. 'lheliberation of the hammer to fire is effected by turning the shaft L in the direction ofthe red arrow shown .in Fig, 1, and so bringing the arms MMinto contact with and causing them to press back. the loaded rear or lower ends of the levers P P, and so causing the said levers to depress the rear ends of the levers N N and raise the hooks n from the hammer, as shownin red outline in Fig. 1,leaving the latter at liberty to be driven forward by the springs I I. The hammer, when driven forward, strikes with equal force upon all the pins E E, and so causes the latter to produce the explosion of the priming. After the firing of the battery the hammer is drawn back and recocked vby turning the shaft L in the direction of the blacklarrow, as hereinbefore described, the sliding breech-piece D is drawn down by a half-turn ofthe shaft J, and the chamber-piece C is removed and a loaded one substituted for it in the cavity of the barrel-block. The slid* ing breech-piece is then moved up again toits place by another half-turn of the shaft J, and the batteryis ready to be fired again by simply turning .the shaft L in the direction of the red arrow shown in Fig. l.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. The vertically-sliding breech -piece and chamber-block C, applied in combination with each other and with the barrel-block B, substantially as and for the purpose herein specified.

2. The springG, appliedin combination with the movable breech-piece D and with the pins a E E,substantially for the purpose herein specified.

3. The combination of the single hammerF and a series of pins, E E, corresponding with the number of barrels, substantially as herein specified.

4. .The combination of the hooked levers N Naud loaded levers P P with each other and with the hammer F, substantially as herein set forth.

5. The shaft L and its arms M M, appliedin combinationwith the hammer F and levers N N P P, substantially as herein described, to serve the two purposes of cooking and liberating the hammer.

JAMES BRETT.

Witnesses L. S. FORMAN, E. G. LIND. 

